Transmission and distribution lines for power, telephone, cable, and other utilities are often supported above ground level by utility poles. The poles may be made from wood, steel, aluminum, polymer, concrete or other materials. Conventional installation of utility poles involves transporting the poles to a worksite, preparation of the poles to support the lines, excavating holes in the ground, and placing the poles in the excavated holes. Due to the size and weight of utility poles, much of the labor involved in placing the poles in their respective holes is performed by service vehicles or trucks outfitted with implements for handling the utility poles. The trucks are also outfitted with augers useful for excavating the holes into which the utility poles are placed.
The preparation of utility poles to support transmission and distribution lines involves mounting various accessories onto the poles. While the accessories can be mounted to the poles with the poles laying flat on the ground, the low position of the poles on the ground is not ergonomic and is therefore inconvenient for persons installing the accessories onto the poles. Accordingly, installers typically prefer to utilize the implements on the service truck to support at least one end of the poles a distance off of the ground surface so that the various accessories can be easily mounted to the poles. When the service truck is used in this manner, however, the truck cannot be used to evacuate holes or install poles into the holes. Accordingly, work typically proceeds at a relatively slow pace while the service truck is being used to support utility poles while accessories are added. The overall result is that resources and equipment are not utilized to their full potential. A need therefore exists for a system that permits service personnel to effectively and ergonomically mount accessories to utility poles without requiring the use of the service vehicle so that equipment and manpower can be utilized to their full potential and installation of the poles can proceed at an efficient pace.